Was Thomas Jefferson a pragmatic or an idealist?

Question: Was Thomas Jefferson a pragmatic or an idealist!?

!.!.!.or both!?

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Best Answer - Chosen by Asker:

He was an idealist!. He believed purely in the people's ability to govern themselves (particularly after his return from France)!. While he and John Adams were on-again off-again friends, they occupied distinctly opposite corners of the ideological spectrum!.

John Adams believed that the government had to protect the people from themselves - because while he respected the ideal that the people should have the right to govern themselves, he believed that there were inherent flaws in any such system, and that the system would be abused unless great safeguards were implemented!.

Thomas Jefferson was much more of the opinion that the will of the people would direct in the best interest, and tended to resist most of the attempts to grow the power of the Federal Government, as he saw it oppressive to the rights of people!.

Furthermore, his ideas were influenced by highly idealistic Enlightenment philosophers such as, most notably, John Locke!. He was, to an extent, pragmatic, but he was one of the least pragmatic and most idealistic of the Founding Fathers!. Www@QuestionHome@Com

I would have said idealist but read this article!.Www@QuestionHome@Com